The present invention relates to a suction nozzle for a vacuum cleaner, including a brush that is disposed in the suction nozzle and is driven by a battery-powered electric motor, with the suction nozzle being in flow communication with the vacuum cleaner via a suction hose, and with the suction nozzle being provided with a shaft for guiding and handling same.
For cleaning especially textile or fabric floor surfaces suction nozzles are used in conjunction with a vacuum cleaner; the suction nozzles have a rotatably driven, cylindrical brush. This brush is mounted in the suction nozzle in such a way that during the cleaning process its bristles penetrate into the surface of the textile floor covering, so that in addition to the vacuum cleaning, an additional mechanical loosening of adhering dirt particles is effected.
The drive of the rotating, generally cylindrical brushes is effected with domestic units, and especially with commercial vacuum cleaners, via an electric motor that is accommodated within the housing of the suction nozzle. Power is generally supplied to the motor via a detachable power line that is connected to a connector socket on the vacuum cleaner. This connecting line, which connects the drive motor of the suction nozzle with the power driven vacuum cleaner, can get in the way, especially with vacuum cleaners where the suction nozzle is connected to the vacuum cleaner by a long suction hose, for example a suction pipe and a suction hose, as is the case with larger domestic vacuum cleaners and in particular with commercial vacuum cleaners. With such units, the connecting line for the suction nozzle is guided along the suction hose and the suction pipe to the vacuum cleaner, where special holders or brackets, for example retaining rings or the like, are provided that securely hold the connecting line for the suction nozzle in place on the suction hoses or pipes.
Constructions are known where the power supply line to the suction nozzle is integrated directly into the suction hose that connects the nozzle and vacuum cleaner. However, since such a guidance of the electric line requires special measures for safety reasons, it is therefore complicated and expensive, and is furthermore susceptible to problems.
With one heretofore known vacuum cleaner (EP-A2 0 267 056), the electric drive motor is powered by a battery that is accommodated within the housing of the suction nozzle. The drawback of this arrangement is that the size of the battery, and hence the capacity thereof, is very limited due to the limited space conditions, especially since in many cases it is necessary to also install a charger for charging the battery. If the charger is eliminated, it is necessary to provide a separate charging unit and to connect the suction nozzle to this unit for recharging the batteries; in such a case, the suction nozzle cannot be used during the charging process. If the battery is disposed in the suction nozzle, especially in conjunction with a generally necessary charger, the overall center of gravity of the unit is disadvantageously shifted downwardly, and the weight of the unit is undesirably increased. Such units are therefore heavy and difficult to handle. Building the batteries in, possibly along with a charger, additionally undesirably limits to a great extent the possible structural configuration of the overall vacuum cleaner.
It is an object of the present invention to embody a suction nozzle of the aforementioned general type in such a way that these drawbacks are avoided and a manageable suction nozzle having a favorably disposed center of gravity is provided, with the configuration of the actual suction nozzle not being adversely affected by having to build in batteries, with the inventive configuration furthermore enabling easy access to the batteries for easy replacement thereof.